Thanks for the memories!

Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

El Hierro is (compared to Tenerife or Gran Canaria) a less known and much less populated island in the Canary Islands. This movie tells the story of a woman who loses her 5 year old son on a ferry trip to that island. The police search leads to no result. Later she finds that her son was not the only kid who is missing, and she begins her own investigation if anyone is abducting children maybe? I got hold of this Blu-ray rather accidentally (in a 'buy two, get one free' deal), which proves that sometimes the best things are for free. This is a recommendable little thriller, deliberately keeping the story simple, so it can put the emphasis on atmosphere and pictures. Having been to the Canary Islands several times, I'm surprised one can shoot such a dark picture in these sunny places. 'Hierro' is about the fear and anxiety of its main character, so we are talking about psychological thrills here and not a maniac with an axe. The makers put El Hierro to great use insofar as you can run for miles without meeting anyone. Talking of running: Horror movie fans should go elsewhere, but anyone who likes a tasteful dark movie with style, give it a try.

María has lost her child and goes to the island of Hierro to identify the body. There she discovers that something is wrong.And there is. Problem is: it's way too easy to figure out. When María starts following up on the leads of her "investigation", you immediately suspect she's bonkers. Another tell tale sign: actress Elena Anaya walking around like an emotional zombie, which apart from telling us María's crazy, also fails to convey her grief. Nevertheless the writers present her warped view of reality as some great twist at the end.For a 90 minute movie there's very little plot, which makes María's quest feel quite random. She just wanders around the island, gathering clues. Nothing much happens. The director tries to compensate by hammering home two visual motifs: water and birds. Granted, this makes for some beautiful imagery, but after about 45 minutes you realize he's bluffing. The images suggest that there's more than meets the eye. There isn't.The locations are well used and the cinematography is beautiful, but they cannot save a dull, predictable movie without much substance.

Gabe Ibanez's stylish directorial debut is a stunning mystery-chiller concerning every parent's worst nightmare.6 months after the disappearance of her son aboard a ferry to the island of El Hierro, young mother Maria (the excellent Elena Anaya) is summoned back to the volcanic environment after the body of a child is recovered from a watery grave...To reveal any more of the plot would be performing a shameful disservice as this nifty genre piece has many twists and visual delights lying in wait for unsuspecting viewers. Cinematographer Alejandro Martinez's impressive widescreen compositions and washed out colours perfectly capture the atmosphere and feel of the protagonist's surroundings, turning the island into a character that appears to be manipulating the distraught Maria's emotions and sense of reality. A lengthy sequence on a deserted sun-drenched beach is executed to eerie, haunting effect creating a disturbing dream-into-nightmare set-piece.Ibanez's measured pace and sure direction (with knowing nods to Lynch and Argento) bring proceedings swiftly and surely to a moving conclusion. I feel the negative response from the Brit film-reviewing contingent re the 'signposted' twist-ending are somewhat missing the point, as the movie works perfectly well on it's own as a study of a traumatised individual going into meltdown. This isn't the tacky 'Gotcha-with-that-ending-didnt I?!!' M Night Charlatan wannabe that we've been lead to believe. No sir.If I have any criticisms, i'd have to direct them at M de la Riva's Hermanesque score which, whilst being perfectly serviceable in it's own right, is often over-used to the point of obtrusiveness, particularly in scenes where the visuals and superb sound mixing are working perfectly well by themselves. But that's a tiny discrepancy in an otherwise intelligent, first rate thriller. Ibanez is a name to watch.

There are quite a few good movies from Spain, covering the horror thriller. This one starts really good and has awesome cinematography and really good actors. Still in the end, it doesn't completely deliver on the premise.One of the main problems being, that it too foreseeable, but still tries to build upon a twist, that you can see coming a long way, before it actually gets revealed in the movie. The hints are there of course and it is pretty nicely done. Maybe if this is your very first thriller, you might be a bit more excited. But all in all, you can watch this, just be patient with the movie and enjoy it's setting and the "view".